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Category Archives: Special Diets


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Southwestern BLT

Mike and I have had more bacon over the last month than we have over the last year. We’ve gone through two packages (gasp). I’m normally not a huge fan of bacon. When I go out to eat and get a sandwich or salad that customarily comes with bacon, I ask for it without. Or, I pick it out and give it to Mike.

But sometimes, sometimes, bacon is exactly what you need. I mean, can you imagine a BLT without bacon? I can’t. To be honest, BLTs are one of the very few ways I will actually eat bacon. I’ve been tossing around BLT variations in my head for a while, but never acted on it. Then, the BLT fairies took pity on me and assigned me this Southwestern BLT sandwich for our “lunch food” recipe swap! This recipe is from fellow Wisconsinite Ashley over at Cheese Curd in Paradise.

Bonus: I bought most of the ingredients for this sandwich at the farmers’ market! Win-win-win.

Southwestern BLT {dairy free} | doughseedough.net

Southwestern BLT
serves 4

for the chipotle mayo:
1/3 cup fresh cilantro
1/3 cup low-fat mayo
1 chipotle pepper in adobo + 2 teaspoons adobo sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

for the BLT:
8 strips thick-cut bacon
8 slices of sourdough bread
4 romaine lettuce leaves, ripped into sandwich-size pieces
1 large yellow tomato, sliced into 8 pieces
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and sliced into 8 pieces

  1. Make the mayo: combine cilantro, mayo, chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and lime juice in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
  2. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy. Move to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the fat.
  3. Lightly toast the bread, if desired.
  4. To assemble: spread chipotle mayo on 4 slices of bread. Top the bread with bacon, lettuce, tomato, and avocado. Spread remaining 4 slices of bread with mayo and place, mayo-side down, on the sandwiches.

very slightly adapted from Cheese Curd in Paradise

Thanks again to Sarah at Taste of Home Cooking for hosting! Click on the link to check out the other delicious swap recipes!


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Three Cup Tofu

Once in a while I dream of “san bei ji”, or three cup chicken. It’s a Taiwanese dish I associate strongly with my mom. She gave me her recipe for three cup chicken and I’ve tried to recreate it. Even though I follow her directions exactly, it never tastes right. It’s mystifying – there are so few ingredients. Literally no room for error. I’m not sure what her secret is, but I’ve given up.

Luckily, I can create a little magic of my own. Specifically in the form of three cup tofu. It follows her basic three cup chicken recipe, but with a few adjustments. And folks, this is good. Even if you’re not a tofu fan, you have got to give this a try. I fell in love with the texture of the tofu in this dish – it’s silky, but not mushy. The sauce is rich, but not heavy.

This may be my ultimate comfort food.

three cup tofu | doughseedough.net

Three Cup Tofu

14 ounce container firm tofu, drained
2 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons sesame oil
1.5-inch piece of ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
5 cloves of garlic, smashed
3 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine
3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 cup water
1 teaspoon corn starch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
1 cup fresh Thai basil leaves, ripped into large pieces

cooked brown rice, for serving

  1. Press tofu with paper towel to soak up excess moisture. Heat oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Fry tofu on both sides until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Place tofu on paper towels to drain.
  2. Reduce heat to low and add in sesame oil. Add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
  3. Stir in cooking wine, soy sauce, brown sugar, and water. Increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer sauce for 5 minutes. Stir in corn starch mixture and cook until sauce thickens, about 1 minute.
  4. Gently stir in tofu and Thai basil and cook for 1 more minute.
  5. Serve immediately over brown rice.

 

adapted from my mother’s three cup chicken recipe 


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Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant

I’ve been a little scattered lately. I wrote up a menu plan for the week, made a grocery list, and set off to the store with Mike. We finish shopping and go back home only to find out that I had been shopping off a partially completed grocery list. This meant that I didn’t have enough ingredients to make any of the meals that I had planned on. Oops. Thankfully, I had some garden zucchini and a cute little eggplant from a coworker to work with. I whipped this up with what we did have on hand and it ended up being not only edible, but pretty darn good!

Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant over Couscous | doughseedough.net

(P.S. It’s really, really good with a health drizzle off sriracha 😉 )

Curried Chicken with Zucchini and Eggplant with Pearl Couscous
serves 4

for the couscous:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/3 cup pearl couscous
1 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth, hot

for the chicken:
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 medium eggplant, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 large zucchini, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
15 ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cups cherry tomatoes

  1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add couscous and cook until lightly golden, about 5 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 10 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed and the couscous is tender. Set aside and keep warm.
  2. While couscous is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and cook until brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken to a bowl and keep warm. Add eggplant to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes. Add in zucchini and onion to the pan and saute for an additiona 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, curry powder, garam masala, and red pepper flakes. Taste, and add additional salt and pepper, if desired. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Add chicken and cherry tomatoes to pan and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through and tomatoes burst, about 5 minutes.
  3. Serve hot over prepared couscous.


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Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

I’m going spaghetti squash nuts over here. I can’t get enough of the stuff! My newest dish – spaghetti carbonara! This recipe is so far from the “original” carbonara that I’m not quite sure what to call it. Spaghetti (Squash) Not-Carbonara? It’s kind of a mouthful. I was determined to find a way to get all that rich awesomeness that a traditional carbonara has into a dish that has no butter, no cheese, and no pasta. So, basically not carbonara at all. But this dish definitely captures the richness of carbonara and it has some of the same components. I figured since I was so far off from the traditional pasta dish that I might as well go all out – no pasta, no butter, no cheese… might as well add in some sun dried tomatoes and spinach while we’re at it. Why the heck not?

Go on and make this now, ok? It’s delish, trust me.

dairy free spaghetti squash carbonara | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free Spaghetti Squash Carbonara
serves 4 – 6

for the squash:
1 large spaghetti squash
salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil spray

for the sauce:
6 strips bacon
2 small onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large zucchini, diced
5 sun dried tomatoes, diced
3 egg yolks
2 tablespoons plain, unsweetened almond milk
salt (I used about ¼ teaspoon)
freshly ground black pepper (I used about ½ teaspoon)

  1. Prepare the squash: Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut squash in half and scoop out seeds. Spray with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place squash cut-side down in a baking pan and bake in preheated oven for 45 – 60 minutes, or until squash is easily pierced with a fork.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce: In a large pan over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy, about 5 – 7 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate and drain off all but 1 teaspoon of bacon grease from the pan.
  3. Add garlic, onions, zucchini and sun dried tomatoes to pan and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.
  4. In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolks and almond milk. Remove pan from heat and slowly pour egg yolk into vegetables, stirring frequently to prevent eggs from scrambling. Stir until well combined. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
  5. Shred the flesh of the squash to create “spaghetti”. Place on spaghetti squash noodles on a plate and top with sauce.

adapted from Food Network


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Happy Anniversary! Celebrating with Dairy Free Carrot Cake

Here’s a very, very happy three year anniversary to my taste tester, dish washer, and biggest supporter – Mike. I can’t believe it’s been three years since we’ve said “I do”. It was a perfect day. We were surrounded by family…

Photo by Alacrity Photography

friends…

Go Badgers! Photo by Alacrity Photography

and lots and lots of cake.

Photo by Alacrity Photography

Seven flavors, to be exact. This was one wedding detail that I refused to give in on. I didn’t want a monstrous cake covered in fondant. I wanted seven of my favorite types of cakes from Manderfield’s Bakery:

  1. Chocolate Symphony: “…layers of rich chocolate cake, dreamy chocolate mousse, smooth chocolate buttercream, and sweet chocolate ganache.“
  2. Chocolate Truffle: “Tasty chocolate cake… filled with fudge & covered with creamy chocolate icing and rich truffle.”
  3. German Chocolate: “Chocolate cake is filled with fudge and whipped cream, then covered with a layer of rich caramel, coconut and nuts.”
  4. Raspberry Snowball: “Luscious raspberry filling, white chocolate mousse, and vanilla cake are all surrounded by fluffy whipped cream.”
  5. Strawberry Mousse: “…moist vanilla cake filled with plenty of juicy strawberry filling and amazing strawberry mousse.”
  6. Carrot Cake: “Delectably moist carrot cake is surrounded by tasty cream cheese icing with toasted pecans & flaky coconut.”
  7. Turtle Torte: “…chocolate fudge cake is topped with rich caramel, toasted pecans & whipped cream.”

On our first anniversary, we had some Chocolate Truffle cake my mom had saved from our wedding night. Thank goodness for moms, right? It hadn’t even occurred to me to save some wedding cake in the middle of all the excitement. I remember my mom giving me the cake the next day, and I (stupidly) just shoved it into the freezer without wrapping it properly. Well, it tasted pretty gross a year later. Surprise. I took one, maybe two bites before quitting. Mike finished it like because he isn’t one to waste cake. Especially a chocolate cake.

On our second anniversary, I did a little better. I went to the bakery with the intention of buying the cake that we had cut: Chocolate Symphony. Unfortunately, I found out that these have to be pre-ordered (fail). So, I settled on another cake that we had at our wedding… we’re 90% sure it was the Turtle Torte. Apparently our memories are awful – we’re aging really, really quickly.

Now, it’s our third anniversary, I’m avoiding dairy, and we’re two hours from Manderfield’s. I wanted to continue with our tradition of eating wedding cakes on our anniversary, so I set off to create a dairy free carrot cake that was as good as our wedding carrot cake. Not an easy feat, I tell ya. But here’s what I came up with! Here’s to hoping that we have many, many more cakes in our future!

Photo by Alacrity Photography

Don’t be scared off by how not-so-pretty this cake is. It’s absolutely delicious. Moist with the perfect amount of spice.  I’m still working out the kinks in dairy-free baking. The cake itself turned out awesome. The frosting, a bit runny, Some day, I will perfect dairy free cream cheese frosting. Until then, kinda-runny dairy free cream cheese frosting will have to do 😉


dairy free carrot cake | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free Carrot Cake
serves 10 or 1 happily married couple 😉

2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup crushed pineapple
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 pound carrots, peeled and shredded (about 3 1/2 – 4 cups)
dairy free cream cheese frosting, recipe below
1 cup chopped walnuts, optional

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by lightly greasing and lining the bottom with parchment paper.
  2. In a small cup, stir together lemon juice and almond milk. Let sit for 10 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
  4. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, sugar, brown sugar, applesauce, oil, pineapple and vanilla until well combined. Add in dry ingredients until just combined. Add in the carrots and stir until just combined.
  5. Pour batter into prepared cake pans and bake for 30 – 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  6. Allow cakes to cool for 30 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Carefully remove the cakes and peel off the parchment paper. Allow to cool completely on the wire rack before frosting.  Sprinkle chopped walnuts on top of frosted cake before serving.

dairy free carrot cake | doughseedough.net

Dairy Free Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounce container of dairy-free cream cheese, I used GO Veggie!
1/4 cup dairy free butter substitute, I used Earth Balance
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pound powdered sugar

  1. In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add vanilla and beat until well combined. Slowly beat in powdered sugar, one cup at a time, until frosting is thick and fluffy.

cake and frosting adapted from Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy


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Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta

This meal is so easy it’s ridiculous. Like 15 minutes from start to finish.  Avocado, spinach, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Whirl in food processor. Toss with pasta… Dinner is served.

It’s good served warm. It’s good cold the next day. It’s so good that Mike is still talking about it, a week later. Who knew it would be so easy to impress that man?

15 minute creamy avocado pasta {dairy free} | doughseedough.net

I ate mine on top of a huge bed of spinach. Mike had his with extra bacon on top 😉 Vegan or vegetarian? Skip the bacon and you’re good to go!

Creamy Avocado Pesto Pasta
serves 6

1 13.25 ounce package whole wheat spaghetti
olive oil spray
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeño, minced
4 cups spinach
2 avocados, pitted and peeled
3 lemons, juiced
4 slices cooked bacon, chopped, optional

  1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta and reserve 1 cup of pasta water.
  2. While pasta is cooking, make the sauce: heat a medium pan over medium heat and lightly spray with olive oil. Add in garlic and jalapeno and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add in spinach and saute until wilted, about 2 minutes. Place spinach into the bowl of a food processor. Add in avocados and lemon juice. Puree until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste.
  3. Mix the avocado sauce with cooked spaghetti and toss to coat.  Add pasta water as needed to thin sauce to desired consistency. Top with bacon if desired.

adapted from Oh She Glows


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Shrimp and Vegetables in Lemon-Garlic Sauce

Surprise, another recipe with tomatoes!  I really shouldn’t complain about our abundance, because I know in a few short weeks winter will be here and a beautiful, tasty tomato will be pretty much impossible to find. Sigh. Wisconsin winters, I love you and hate you all at the same time.

I love fresh, easy dishes like this one. It makes me feel like I’m doing something good for my body. In my mind it cancels out all the Sour Skittles I eat and all the booze I drink. So, go for it – do your body some good and eat a dish with some super-grain quinoa and fresh summer veggies.

Shrimp and Vegetables in Lemon-Garlic Sauce | doughseedough.net

Shrimp and Vegetables in Lemon-Garlic Sauce

3 cups low sodium chicken broth, divided
1 cup quinoa
2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
2 large bell peppers, chopped
2 medium zucchini, seeded and chopped
2 lemons, zested and juiced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
chopped parsley to garnish, optional

  1. In a medium pot, bring 2 cups of chicken broth to a boil. Add in quinoa and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has been absorbed and quinoa is cooked through.
  2. While quinoa is cooking, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add bell peppers, zucchini, and lemon zest and cook until vegetables are tender-crisp, about 4 – 5 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a bowl and keep warm.
  3. Heat remaining teaspoon of olive oil in pan. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add in shrimp and cook for 1 minute. Stir in remaining 1 cup broth and lemon juice and cook until shrimp are pink and cooked through, about 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and serve over cooked quinoa. Garnish with parsley, if desired.


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SNAP Challenge: Day 7

We made it.

I’d like to say that I’ve grown from this experience. I think I have. I’ve learned to think about my life situation in a different light. I hope I can carry this wisdom with me as I continue in my “normal” life now. I’ve learned that I can live without so many things that I’ve deemed necessary in the past. That $5 after-work cocktail to unwind? No longer is it a necessity on a Friday. It’s a luxury. That $5 could feed a person for an entire flippin’ day. That $5 fed me for a day.

I’m well aware that living on a limited budget for a week doesn’t come close to the struggles that low-income families face for weeks, months, or years on end. It does, however, give me a better understanding and a new perspective. It was also a good reminder to why I volunteered for so many years at food pantries. It was the push I needed to get back out there again; because no matter how busy life gets or how hard it may seem, there is always time to help another person out.

What we ate on our last day:

  • Breakfast: oatmeal with egg (me) and whole wheat toast with peanut butter and banana (Mike)
  • Snack: grapes (me) and cookies and pineapple chunks (Mike)
  • Lunch: black bean soup with baked tortilla chips and guacamole (me) and sandwich with turkey, cheddar cheese, guac, and mustard (Mike)
  • Dinner: black bean soup

I will leave you with my favorite meal of the SNAP Challenge: spicy black bean soup with a cumin lime sour cream and baked tortilla chips.

spicy black bean soup with cumin lime sour cream | doughseedough.net

Spicy Black Bean Soup with Cumin Lime Sour Cream

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, diced
4 jalapenos, minced
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons white pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano
6 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, drained but not rinsed
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
7 cups water

for the sour cream:
1/2 cup light sour cream
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 lime, juiced
salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 green onions, thinly sliced
baked tortilla chips (recipe below)

  1. Heat olive oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Add onions, carrot, jalapenos, and garlic. Saute until onions are translucent, about 3 – 5 minutes.
  2. Add spices and stir until well combined. Continue to cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
  3. Add beans, tomatoes, and water and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until thickened, about 40 – 45 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile, prepare the sour cream: To make the sour cream, combine all ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until needed.
  5. When soup has thickened, use an immersion blender and blend soup until smooth or use a blender to puree in small batches.
  6. Garnish with sour cream and sliced green onions and serve with baked tortilla chips.

baked tortilla chips | doughseedough.net

Baked Tortilla Chips

5 flour tortillas
nonstick spray or canola oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, divided

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
  2. Lay tortillas in a single layer on a cutting board. Brush them lightly with oil or spray with cooking spray.
  3. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the garlic powder. Flip tortillas over and repeat.
  4. Stack tortillas and cut into 8 wedges. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 – 15 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.
  5. Let cool on pan before serving.


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SNAP Challenge: Day 6 and Slow Cooker Turkey Quinoa Meatballs

Today’s Feeding America prompt: “In November 2013, the government will cut SNAP benefits for all recipients. These cuts will be $36 for a family of four – dropping the average benefit per person per meal to under $1.40.  How would this week have been different for you if you had even less money to spend on food?”

I’ve typed up a dozen really, really long responses to this prompt and I’ve deleted them all. Short version: you’re told to follow MyPlate guidelines for a “healthy diet”. Then you’re given a little over $4 a day to figure out how the hell you’re supposed to do that. How is a person supposed to fit low-fat dairy, lean meat, whole grains and tons of fruits and vegetables into their diet each day with $4? I haven’t quite figured that out. We had a lot less fresh fruits and vegetables around to snack on. My meal plan this week was also severely lacking in the dairy department. I couldn’t fit in milk into our budget for Mike, let alone lactose-free milk for myself!  What if a low-income family had special diets to accommodate for? I’m hoping to give this Challenge a try again in November when benefits are cut (and when I don’t have garden produce). But I can’t imagine it going any easier.

What we ate today:

  • Breakfast: oatmeal with egg (me) and whole wheat toast with peanut butter and banana (Mike)
  • Snack: peanut butter toast with banana (me)
  • Lunch: macaroni and cheddar cheese (Mike) and pepper chicken with rice (me)
  • Dinner: spicy black bean soup with cumin lime sour cream and baked tortilla chips
  • Snack: raisins

I’ll be honest – it’s been hard keeping up with daily blog posts to document the SNAP Challenge. I’m already thinking about food a lot more than usual; having to not only cook, but photograph and write about it makes it even harder. To top it all off, I spend a lot of my free time reading food magazines and food blogs. Torturing myself, really. Writing about the turkey quinoa meatballs literally made my stomach growl. I’m so tired of eating chicken and bell peppers cooked different ways. I think I need a break from them after the Challenge is over. Sorry chicken, sorry peppers – it’s not you, it’s me. But, it’s not really me… in fact it’s 100% you.

That leads me nicely into today’s recipe from a blogger’s choice swap (not part of the SNAP Challenge). This time, I bring you a dish that I made a couple weeks ago (yup, no worries –  we didn’t cheat during the Challenge!). This dish is something new, something different, something that doesn’t contain chicken or green bell peppers! Drum roll please… turkey quinoa meatballs!

Turkey? With quinoa?  Yup. And they are awesome. I made a few minor changes to Ali’s recipe: I had a plethora of tomatoes to use so I used fresh tomatoes instead of canned. I also left out the cheese from the meatballs, but Mike had a little shaved on top of his finished dish.

I served the meatballs over spaghetti squash, but you can use regular ol’ spaghetti noodles if you would like!

turkey quinoa meatballs with spaghetti squash | doughseedough.net

Slow Cooker Turkey & Quinoa Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash
adapted from Sparks from the Kitchen

2 1/2 pounds lean ground turkey
1 cup cooked quinoa
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for browning
2 teaspoons Italian herbs
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 large sweet onion, cut into rounds
2 cups tomato sauce (I used homemade)
4 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
Pecorino Romano cheese, for garnish, optional

1 large spaghetti squash*
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

  1. In a large bowl, combine turkey, quinoa, garlic, egg, olive oil, Italian spices, onion powder, salt and white pepper. Mix by hand until combined, being careful not to over-mix.
  2. Roll meatballs into 1 1/2-inch balls and set aside.
  3. Place sliced onions on the bottom of a slow cooker. Pour in 1 cup tomato sauce and 2 cups of the chopped tomatoes.
  4. Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place meatballs into pan, being careful not to overcrowd. Brown meatballs on all sides. When browned, place them into the slow cooker on top of the tomatoes. Once you have half the meatballs in the slow cooker, top with another cup of chopped tomatoes. Continue to brown the meatballs and place them in the slow cooker.
  5. When all meatballs are browned, add the remaining tomato sauce and chopped tomatoes, making sure all the meatballs are covered.
  6. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.
  7. An hour before serving, prepare the spaghetti squash. Preheat oven to 450°F and lightly grease a baking pan.
  8. Cut spaghetti squash in half and scrape out seeds. Season with olive oil, salt, and freshly ground black pepper. Place squash flesh-side down in prepared pan and bake for 30 – 40 minutes or until fully cooked. Remove pan from oven and let squash cool slightly. When cool enough to handle, scrape out the squash strands from the skin.
  9. Place spaghetti squash on a plate and top with meatballs and sauce. Garnish with freshly grate Pecorino Romano, if desired.

Thanks again to Sarah at Taste of Home Cooking for hosting! Click on the link to check out the other delicious swap recipes!


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SNAP Challenge: Day 5

Today’s Feeding America prompt: “We know that low-income Americans have to make choices between groceries, prescriptions, gas for the car, utilities, and other household necessities. After living on a limited food budget this week, how has your perspective changed about the decisions families facing hunger must make?“

Simply put? I can’t imagine it. Even thought I have limited our food budget, our scenario in no way even compares to what millions of families deal with on a daily basis. We were hungry, but we didn’t go hungry. I had the comfort of knowing that I could fail out of the challenge and get something to eat if we did run out of food. These families don’t have that option.

While Mike and I try to stick to a budget, we realize that sometimes things happen. We might need more gas one week. I might get sick and need to see a doctor or pick up some meds (Mike never gets sick…). Or my car brakes might decide to die. Or my car wipers might decide to stop working…. Yeah, my car is a trouble maker. But, we deal with these unexpected expenses. I honestly don’t know what I would do if I had to choose between gas to get to work or a meal for my family. Would I walk? Try to catch a ride from a coworker? What if someone got really sick? Do we go to the doctor? Do we pay for their medication? Having to choose between life essentials doesn’t seem right.

All these “what ifs” make it clear to me that programs like SNAP are essential for low-income families. It’s a good reminder to be thankful for what I have in life.

This Challenge is bringing about a lot of emotions. Mike and I talk a lot about food insecurity and poverty on the way to work. It’s a really intense way to start the day. Things are getting a little easier for me now. We only have 2 more days left of the Challenge and I can tell that we will have enough food. It’s still hard not having the luxury of eating whatever we want, whenever we want, but I’m starting to adjust.

Unfortunately, I think I’m also getting sick. All I wanted to do after work is eat a bowl of mango sorbet and go to bed. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t even skip making dinner because if I didn’t cook dinner that would mean I wouldn’t have lunch the next day. Blargh.

What we ate today:

  • Breakfast: savory oatmeal with an egg (me) and peanut butter toast with sliced banana (Mike)
  • Snack: peanut butter toast with 1/4 banana (me) and a cookie (Mike)
  • Lunch: pepper chicken with rice (me) and chili with rice (Mike)
  • Snack: peanut butter toast with 1/4 banana (me) and turkey sandwich with mustard (Mike)
  • Dinner: chicken fajitas with guacamole, tortillas, and sauteed zucchini (Mike also had cheese and sour cream)
  • Snack: raisins

easy chicken fajitas | doughseedough.net

Easy Chicken Fajitas

for the chicken:
1 lime, juiced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper, to taste
2 boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 teaspoon canola oil

for the vegetables:
3 onions, halved and sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
2 bell peppers, sliced into 1/4-inch strips
salt and pepper, to taste

to serve:
flour tortillas
sharp cheddar cheese, grated
light sour cream
guacamole (see below for recipe)

  1. In a shallow bowl, combine lime juice, garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper*. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, turning every 10 minutes.
  2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, Brown chicken and cook until cooked through and meat is no longer pink in the middle. Remove from heat and keep warm.
  3. Using the same skillet, add vegetables and saute until tender-crisp, about 10 minutes. Slice chicken into 1/4-inch pieces and toss with vegetables. Serve immediately with tortillas and garnishes, if desired.

*I made a double batch of this marinade and mixed half of it in with my garden zucchini! I seeded the squash, quartered it, and then sauteed it with the marinade over medium heat for about 15 minutes until tender. Delish 🙂

easy chicken fajitas | doughseedough.net

This guac made not being able to have cheese and sour cream on my fajita a little more bearable. I ate a ton of it. Splurging on an extra avocado during the shopping trip was totally worth it!

Guacamole

2 medium avocados
1 lime, juiced
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1/4 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste

  1. In a medium bowl, mash avocados with a fork. Mix in lime juice, tomatoes, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Stir until well combined.
  2. Serve immediately.